Overachieving...

So, moved by the need to show more than a measly five pounds of improvement this month, I really wanted to push myself as it came to my workout. I did that. This morning I set my cardio machine to a higher resistance and really pushed myself to keep up with the girl next to me, who happened to be half my size and probably a good five years younger by the looks of her. This evening, I am paying for my exuberance. I've been vaguely uncomfortable since I rolled out of bed this afternoon. My knees have decided to remind me I'm too old and fat to be running around like a twenty year old. My legs ache from the extra effort exerted this morning and I've had a nagging feeling I've put myself right on the cusp of an actual injury. On top of that, my lower back decided to add its voice to the chorus, bothering me more than it has in a long while. I was in the middle of stretching to try to ease some of my discomfort when I got a charlie horse the size of my fist in my hamstring just above the back of my knee. Talk about pain. I actually felt the knot, hard as a rock, through all the fat of my thigh. I immediately started yelping and hopping around like a crazy person, thankful nobody was around to witness (there are some distinct advantages to working third shift). After executing an emergency hamstring stretch, I hobbled over to, and tumbled into, the first seat I could find. Thoroughly chastened, I can admit to having learned my lesson. There is a difference between challenging yourself in a way that will elevate your fitness level and trying to accomplish too much too fast by biting off more than you can chew.  So I'm now left feeling a little discouraged, a little old, and a lot less fit than I obviously thought I was. Boo.

On a positive note, my chiropractor has told me that all my current exercises are ok, save two. I can't do any shoulder lifts or get on the machine that makes me push weight backward. I never liked doing shoulder lifts, so I'm happy to have a valid excuse to avoid them. I did kind of enjoy the back flexor (as I will refer to it), but I can see why that isn't the best option for me. I've fallen away from doing my weight training, but I recognize the need to get back to it. I am not really looking forward to it. It's the sore muscles. I don't like them. I understand them. I even understand why being sore is, ultimately, a positive thing. But I don't like them, and I really, really hate having to hear people be cheerful about MY soreness. They'll say "what's wrong?" or, "you're a little stiff today, huh?" prompting me to go into detail about my exercise plan at which point I invariably hear "you should be happy!" or "that means it's working!" or both. Nothing makes me want to haul off and hit someone more than hearing all about how I should be joyful at the prospect of daily pain. Bite me. So it is very difficult to refrain from using that as an excuse to avoid weight training all together. I won't. I've made a promise to myself and I'm intent on keeping it. Sometimes I might just need a little more of a nudge than others. I just need to suck it up and get myself lifting. Just not today, because I clearly need a little recovery before I get my fool self hurt for real this time.